Dr. listed in steroid report

A one-time Costa Mesa doctor who has been linked to the Major League Baseball steroid scandal in a recent federal indictment is on the brink of losing his medical license.

State records show that on March 2, 2007, Dr. Ramon Scruggs’ practice was put on probation for 35 months for handing out more than 6,000 prescriptions, including ones for hormones and anabolic steroids, over the Internet without examining the patients.

Scruggs repeatedly showed “gross negligence” and prescribed drug therapies to people as far away as Florida after only a phone consultation and failed to keep adequate medical records, according to the medical board’s report.

Scruggs, 60, did virtually none of the things required to keep his license, according to the medical board’s complaint filed Feb. 29 of this year. Scruggs failed to log what kinds of drugs he was prescribing, how many, and why, according to the complaint.

Officials claim Scruggs also did not complete various classes he was assigned to, including classes on continuing medical education, record-keeping and ethics.

In former Sen. George Mitchell’s report on steroids in baseball released in December, Scruggs and his business are linked to former Angels’ 2002 World Series MVP Troy Glaus, who plays for the Cardinals, and New York Mets pitcher Scott Schoeneweis.

The Mitchell Report said both men received steroids from pharmacies that got them from Scruggs’ New Hope Health Center.

Both men were reportedly not disciplined by baseball’s commissioner because of insufficient evidence that either man violated the league’s drug testing policy at the time.

Scruggs’ reported connection culminated in federal prosecutors unsealing an 11-count indictment naming him and two of his colleagues Wednesday.

Scruggs is accused of distributing anabolic steroids to professional baseball players, law enforcement officials and other members of the public. He, Allan Danto and Heidi Macpherson are accused of money laundering through international wire transfers to China in exchange for smuggled drugs.

Prosecutors claim that the steroids, mislabeled to mislead authorities, were distributed in Napa and Santa Clara counties, and some athletes were actually referred to Scruggs for them.

Attempts to reach Scruggs were unsuccessful on Thursday, and no updated listing for a New Hope Health Center in Costa Mesa was immediately available.

JOSEPH SERNA may be reached at (714) 966-4619 or at [email protected]. MICHAEL MILLER may be reached at (714) 966-4617 or at [email protected].